Wednesday, July 1, 2009

Hooligans

Summer means summer camp, and my younger daughter keeps coming back from her day camp hikes in the Berkeley hills with wild turkey feathers she finds on the trail. Of course, kids aren't the only little creatures having summertime adventures. The turkeys themselves have waddled down from the woods at the top of the hills and are wreaking havoc on the UC campus and in the streets and gardens all over Berkeley and the neighboring towns. They're a bit like our local raccoons, who run in packs and aren't afraid of people, animals, or cars. In fact, the turkeys like to climb up on top of cars and leave scratches and little souvenirs on the hoods. For a university town, Berkeley comes up a bit short in the hooligan department, so the turkeys are filling a need by stirring up all kinds of trouble and I love it!This painting is one of mine from when I co-taught an illustration class on Edward Lear's Owl and the Pussycat with Caron Dunn. Seems these fellows can play both sides of the law.